Can someone PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE help me set Yahoo! Mail as my default E-Mail client?

[Scottcarterwalsh]

I am running Windows Vista Home Premium edition. I made a post regarding this problem a few days ago using my old id, it's under the Yahoo forums, and the thread is something like "Yahoo Browser Services" have disappeared!" I'm not allowed to post a link because I don't have 10 posts yet under this ID...whatever...

Moving along...(keep in mind my problems are regarding messenger 9 although I have tried installing previous versions of 8.X from oldversion.com and those versions are also giving me the same trouble)! But let's stick to 9 as that is the version I'm using now...

I finally got a reply back from Yahoo technical support regarding this missing "Yahoo Browser Services" application. They said they are no longer including this in any version of messenger and in order to make Yahoo! Mail your default E-mail client on your computer, you must include "install toolbar" when you install messenger (apparently the toolbar now has a Yahoo! Mail default E-Mail client setting in it)...notice that I said "APPARENTLY"! However when including the toolbar in the messenger installation it does not actually install any kind of Yahoo! Mail plugin. After installation I attempted to verify if my default E-Mail client had been changed by going to the default programs section in Windows Vista and sure enough, Yahoo! Mail was NOT listed (in ANY of the sections/catagories)!

I then uninstalled the toolbar and reinstalled it via toolbar.yahoo.com and this time the installation works (during the installation it asks you if you want to install the Yahoo! Mail plugin to make Yahoo! Mail your default E-Mail client). Finally I thought I had found out how to get this installed correctly (but not quite)! Before I get into that let's address how the toolbar that is part of the messenger installation is NOT installing the mail plugin like the technical support guy told me it would. Only if you install the toolbar seperately from messenger by going to toolbar.yahoo.com does it then install this mail plugin! All of these problems that I 've currently noted so far (in this post and the previous post that I have linked here above) clearly demonstrates that Yahoo has NO CLUE what they are doing!

OK so now I finally have this "mail plugin" installed and I'm thinking great now I can finally use mailto: links on the internet (as I had previously been doing using previous versions of messenger (before 9.0 they all included the "Yahoo Browser Services" plugin/installation). Well once again I was proven WRONG!

Before I tested out to see if it now worked I went to the default programs section once again in Vista (under the control panel). Under "associate a file type or protocol with a program" I scroll down to the "protocols" section and for the "mailto:" it now shows that Yahoo! Mail is set as the default E-Mail client HOWEVER the icon that is used is NOT the offical "Yahoo! Mail" icon, instead it's some tiny square icon with a tiny picture of what appears to be a picture of two 'gears' inside the icon box (right there a red flag went up with me)! Anyways keeping the "mailto:" protocol highlighted I then click on "change program" at the top of the window. When this window opens up, it clearly shows Yahoo! Mail (WITH THE CORRECT YAHOO! MAIL ICON-mailbox with a "Y" over it) as one of my default choices for E-mail, along with Windows Mail. I click on the Yahoo! Mail icon however that doesn't seem to change the icon back in the main display, it continues to show a pictured icon with two tiny pictures of 'gears' inside it.

To make a long story short (and I'm really sorry for the legnth of this but this is clearly Yahoo's problem and fault) I'm only now 50 percent closer to being able to use "mailto" links correctly with Yahoo! Mail on the internet. When I now click on a "mailto" links on a webpage, a "internet explorer security" window pops up (yellow banner at the top) and it informs me that "windows host process (rundll32)" wants to access the internet and the publisher is Microsoft! There is a check box at the bottom of this popup window "do not show me the warning for this program again" however the check box is greyed out and I can't place a check mark in it! Anyways clicking on "allow" for the secuirty window then loads up Yahoo! Mail!

So basically now anytime I want to use a "mailto: link on the net, I have to go through this damn "internet explorer security" window to get to Yahoo! Mail and it's EXTREMELY annoying!!!

If I go into the "security" tab for IE (sorry but I don't use other browsers) and I uncheck the "protected mode" option at the bottom of the screen, when clicking on "mailto" links on web pages it then takes me straight to Yahoo! Mail with no inturruption of that security window popping up...however being out of "protected mode" is making my computer to be more unsafe...that is not 'flying' with me at al!

To end this, there is obvioulsy a HUGE flaw in Yahoo's program and it's clearly NOT WORKING RIGHT! I have Googled this problem and I can't find any solution to fix this (without compromising my computer's security).

I'm begging anyone...CAN ANYONE PLEASE HELP ME HERE TO GET THIS FIXED? Yahoo is clearly 'out of the loop' on this and either have no idea what is going on with their own software, or they want to act as if they are clueless, not sure which it is but I'm getting quite fed up with it. I have used Yahoo! Mail since 1999 and I've never had a problem like this before with them...EVER! The bottom line is I need my "mailto" links on web pages to work correctly and they are clearly not!

I really hope someone actually read all of this and is willing to help because I'm about out of options here.

Thanks!

P.S. I forgot to mention above, I thought that my computer was the problem here with this and that for some reason, my system had become corrupted (plus it had been a while since I did a clean install) so I took drastic measures. I wipped my entire computer and started over from scratch (reinstalling Windows, etc). Once again, the problem still exisits on a fresh, clean system! Clearly once again, this is a Yahoo problem and certainly has nothing to do with my computer. Doing a clean install on a computer is a pretty drastic thing to do and if the problem is still happening with a fresh/clean system, it should be clear as to where the problem is (and it's not with me).

Thanks again and PLEASE...if someone can help me out here I would really appreciate it!

[MrOats]

Hmmm...Maybe you can contact Yahoo! and ask them if they are going to come out with a new ap that will allow you to use Yahoo! mail as your default client.

[Scottcarterwalsh]

I was using it just fine with version 8.X on Vista for almost a year now. It wasn't until I upgraded to version 9 the other day did the problems start. Now, no matter what version of Messenger I install, there is no E-Mail plugin (unless you download the toolbar seperately from messenger) and even then when trying to use mailto: links, you get security popups from internet explorer. I'm not sure what the deal is but this is ridiculous!

I have exhausted my options with attempts at trying to contact Yahoo. Their E-Mail support is absolutely HILARIOUS (it's like talking to walls...you ask them one thing, they reply about something totally different). I have contacted them by phone and they refuse to give any support on the problem. Like most services online these days, it has come down to this...they just don't care!

If anyone else has a fix for this please let me know. Apparently other people are using messenger with Vista and are NOT having this problem. I'd like to know what the trick is...

[adevroy]

I have read and done everything. Downloaded toolbar, messenger you name it I have done it! Hasn't anyone got a solution yet? I am at whits end here I need yahoo as my default email. I work online and this is creating a mess here. Please if anyone can help let me know. Arlene

[patndoris]

Official Yahoo Help directions

PCHell Instructions

Let me know if either of these helps. The PCHell article looks a bit more in depth but be sure to read the official instructions if you have not already.

[detn8r]

Or switch to Firefox

[Nessa]

Originally Posted by detn8r

Or switch to Firefox

I swear - Firefox should pay you. lol